...And Warm Woolen Mittens...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Tonight it snowed in Colorado Springs and made everything seem all festive all of a sudden. Driving home from dinner I saw the first neighborhood lights set up and it brought such a smile to my face.

I had to stop and take the picture to share I was so excited. I felt like a little kid again. As you can see, I had to fiddle with the camera a bit to get a good picture. And that got me to thinking:

It took several tries to get the image right. Fortunately, the camera allows a preview mode so you can check the photos before you commit to them. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Life did that too? Sometimes you've got to just put your effort in blind and hope that it works out the way you want it to.

Then, while you're messing with whatever you're doing, you've got to pay attention to what's going on outside of your efforts. Sometimes something glorious is happening just outside your view that you'll miss completely if you aren't paying attention. Sometimes you'll see an unexplored path which may lead to glory, or you'll see something that tells you "this is what you're doing this for..." Either way, you have to Look.

And you know, this started out to be a Thanksgiving Post, the obligatory summary of what I'm thankful for. And you know what, I'm thankful for a lot. Some things I'm thankful for them happening and some for them not :)
So, I know I may be happier than I am right now if things were going better or if the company was rolling in cash or whatever but I know I'm Blessed because (in no particular order):

I work with great people, people who share some of my most important dreams

That I have Dreams and I want to make them real

I've got great "kids" in my classes who challenge me and keep me going

I've got more "brilliant ideas" in my head than I could possibly ever turn into reality

I've learned that some take more time to mature than others

I've learned that it's ok to call for help. I don't have to do it all by myself

I've learned to communicate what I want so that the offered help is "helpful"

And that My Way is not necessarily the best way, but it might be a valuable starting point...

And I'm Thankful for our competitors, you know who you are, who challenge us and push us to do better work--and who validate that what we're doing needs to be done

And for our customers who make all the work worthwhile--remember, you are the cause of our work, not an interruption to it and we thank you

Though I'm not as "strong and staminous" as I'd like to be, I'm doing much better than might be true

The list goes on but you get the idea. It's been a great year so far. A hectic, scary year but a great year. I can't wait to see what's next!

And to Sam, Chris, Dace, Brandon, and Ralph, thanks for everything! You guys are the best!

Title Reference: Richard Rogers, Our Favorite Things: Christmas in Vienna